TAMALE HOSPITAL STAFF TRAINED IN EMERGENCY CARE DELIVERY (PAGE 23, AUGUST 9, 2010)

MEDICAL doctors and nurses of the Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH) have undergone a three-day training course to equip them with practical skills to manage resuscitation and other emergency cases effectively.
The training, known as the Paediatric Advanced Life Support Course, was provided by a six-member team of medical professionals from the Louisville School of Medicine, led by Professor Jania Condurache, an Assistant Professor of Paediatrics.
Some of the techniques imparted to the trainees included Endotrachea Intubation, a technique by which a tube is used to get access to the lungs to pump air into a patient whose breathing space or airways are blocked; Cadiac Desrabrillation, using electricity or electrical energy to stimulate the heart to work; and Interoesseus Access, using cannula, a needle used to access the bone to put fluid into the body.
Medical students of the School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS) of the University for Development Studies (UDS) also took part in the training.
The Chief Executive Officer of the TTH, Dr. Ken Sagoe commended the team for imparting, what he called “very critical skills” to the staff of the hospital.
He was particularly excited about the extensive training given to one of the doctors whose duty it would be to provide similar train to medical personnel in other health facilities in the three northern regions.
The CEO also mentioned that the resuscitation and other emergency equipment that had been donated to the TTH by the Louisville team would improve the delivery of medical care at the hospital.
“These equipments would help us deliver quality service, which is in line with our vision to become a first class healthcare delivery and learning centre,” he stated.
A House Officer at the TTH, Dr. Bukari Issah, expressed delight at the depth of knowledge and skills that had been acquired through the training, “particularly during the demonstration sessions of the course.”
He said the course had given him practical experience, which he would apply throughout his medical practice to help save lives.
Dr. Bukari therefore recommended that the course be sustained so as to enable other medical personnel to benefit and also sharpen the skills of others who had already been trained.
One of the medical students, Mr. Wewoli Bentil Awe, said he and his colleagues were full of joy for having received practical training in Paediatric Advanced Life Support whilst still in school.
“It would help us a great deal and so we thank the hospital and the trainers for this opportunity,” he stated.
Professor George Rogers of the International Paediatric Centre at the Louisville School of Medicine later signed a memorandum of understanding to forge greater partnership and cooperation between his school and the TTH and also the UDS Medical School.